Chennai-born chess grandmaster Gukesh Dommaraju made history on Thursday when he became the youngest person ever to win the World Chess Championship. He entered as a challenger in the closely fought match held in Singapore and defeated defending champion Ding Liren from China.
After 13 games, both players were tied at two wins apiece, with the others resulting in a draw. The 14th and final game was also heading for a draw before Gukesh capitalized on Ding’s error on the 55th move and clinched the match for himself.
The World Chess Championship – which comes with a prize of $2.5 million – is the latest laurel in the chess prodigy’s illustrious career. After becoming one of the youngest chess grandmasters at age 12, he won individual gold medals at the 44th and 45th Chess Olympiads held in 2022 and 2024. He was also instrumental in the Indian team winning the bronze and gold medals in those tournaments.
Finally, he also won the Candidates’ Tournament earlier this year, a win that made him eligible to take on the champion Liren as a challenger.